Who among you remembers the first book you read? Or, shall we say the first which made a real impression on you? For me, I grew up on a household that didn't read, and didn't really provide books for a budding bibliophile. So, I did what I could, mostly snitching school books to read from my older cousins. The first I really remember? Being six years old and sneaking my cousin's high school mythology books from her room. The ideas there absolutely fascinated me. Gods and monsters. Far distant lands with strange languages and customs. I was truly hooked on mythology, fantasy and reading itself. It was an epiphany of massive personal proportions.
Back in the middle/late 80's, I was gifted with "Moonheart." Another epiphany of massive personal proportions. I fell into the story, into it's world of myth and legend, and became an Urban Fantasy fan for life. Moonheart's story was, for it's time, groundbreaking. While most mythology of the time retained the ancient characteristics of other myths and legends, Moonheart brought the stories into the modern day, creating the modern Urban Fantasy genre. Of course, Emma Bull's "War For The Oaks" winner of the Locus Award for Best First Novel , Terri Windling's "The Wood Wife" The Wood Wife and Ellen Datlow's various compilations of UF helped cement my love at the time. I spent years collecting all the works I could get my hands on, including a rare, signed copy of de Lint's "The Buffalo Man," The Buffalo Man illustrated by Charles Vess, that I cherish.
Moonheart is perfect for anyone who wants to study the beginnings of UF, but it is a tremendous story for what it is - a beautifully written tale combining music (another of my passions), fairie, mystical forests, mythical artifacts and beings and layers upon layers of worlds. De Lint is a musician himself, and his writing is a paean to the musical heart of myth and mystery.
A living house which straddles two worlds, a cast of characters who I love dearly. Moonheart is a beautiful story I return to over and over again.
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